


Ears

by thatmavin



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Cat/Human Hybrids, Hybrids, M/M, cat!Michael
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-17
Updated: 2014-09-12
Packaged: 2018-02-09 05:00:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1969935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatmavin/pseuds/thatmavin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Ears?" Gavin’s green eyes grew wide.</p><p>"Um, y-yeah." Michael looked down, avoiding Gavin’s curious stare. "It’s why I always have my hat on."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ears like Velvet

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, hello!
> 
> Never before have I written a hybrid!AU, so please accept my first attempt?  
> Kitty Michael will always be one of my fave Michael's because darn he's cute.
> 
> Let me know what you think?  
> I love you all, happy hump day. 
> 
> And as Always,  
> Thanks for Reading!  
> ~ThatMavin <3

"Ears?" Gavin’s green eyes grew wide.

"Um, y-yeah." Michael looked down, avoiding Gavin’s curious stare. "It’s why I always have my hat on."

"Michael, I-"

"I also have clips, that keep my ears down, so you can’t see them twitching under my hat…but sometimes the clips can be painful and they pinch my ears." Michael scrunched up his face. "I know it sounds like I’m whining…but it’s hard to have to hide that part of me all day." 

"Well…" Gavin began. "Who said that you had to?"

"Society." Michael looks up at Gavin, his chocolate brown eyes are intense. "Every fucking day, they run those stupid ads on the TV saying that if any hybrids are spotted, to call the agency to come and collect them." Michael’s voice cracked. "T-this is my home, and I don’t want to leave. This is who I am! I’m not a bad guy, why should I be taken away. Because of my ears?" Michael asked. Gavin felt bad to have been friends with Michael for this long and not have known about this whole other part of him. 

“We work at a very understanding company and we’ll protect you.” Gavin said supportively. “We can talk to Geoff about it…when you’re ready.”

“Maybe…” Michael avoided Gavin’s eyes again.

"Michael," Gavin reached across to rub the older male’s arm gently. "Do you think, that…maybe I could…?" Gavin blushed. 

"What?" Michael’s eyes searched Gavin’s. 

"Can I see your ears?" Gavin asked the question in a nearly silent voice. He didn’t want to startle Michael with the question. 

"Oh…sure!" Michael’s entire face lit up at the question. As he reached up to remove his beanie, he eyed Gavin a little suspiciously. "You…are you sure that it won’t freak you out?"

"What?" Gavin’s jaw fell open. "Michael, no…you’re my friend."

"Ok, Gavin…I trust you." A hint of pink brushed Michael’s face as his hands reached the hat and pulled it from his head. He watched as Gavin’s eyes scanned the top of his head for the ears, but they were stilled tucked down by the clips. "One sec." Michael leaned over to place the hat on the table. Then, one by one, Michael unclamped the securing clips on his ears. "Ow," He uttered as he rubbed the sore appendages. As they were unclipped, they still didn’t rise fully because Michael was nervous, so they stayed down in caution. 

Gavin looked at them with curious attentiveness. Michael’s curls were auburn, a soft reddish brown, but his ears were a darker color. Like a grilled tomato, Gavin thought with a grin. 

"What the hell are you smiling at?" Michael folded his arms, bitting his bottom lip as he did so, so he wouldn't smile as well. 

"Michael, they’re so…"

"So what?" The ears pressed further down to his head as he became more self conscious.

"So cute!" Gavin chirped. Michael’s eyes widened before they crinkled in the corners as he wore a dimpled grin. In reflex to the compliment, his ears perked up and twitched gleefully. Gavin watched in blissful awe as they did so. 

"Really?" Michael’s blood became spiked with giddiness as it flowed through him. 

"Uh-huh!" Gavin held his hands against his own scruffy face. "Really, really, cute!"

"Stop it, Gav." Michael covered his own face shyly. The ears wouldn’t stop twitching though and Michael reddened as he felt them wiggle against his will. 

"Michael," Gavin tugged the hands from Michael’s face. "How much like a cat are you?"

"Um, what does that mean?" Michael’s face was still pink. “I have some instincts but-”

"Do you like to be pet?" Gavin leaned his head to the side. Michael tried to think back to someone petting him. He didn’t remember anyone doing it. 

"No one’s ever-" Michael was going to explain to Gavin that no one has ever really known about his ears besides his parents, and they weren’t really the _nurturing_  type. So even they never really even hugged him. Let alone pet him. 

But, his words were cut off by a warm feeling running through his body. It was like someone was pouring warm milk and honey into his system and his eyes closed upon the contact against his head. Gavin slowly laced his fingers in Michael’s curls, right at the top of his head between his ears. Michael gave a content moan at the gentle scratches against his scalp. 

"Like this?" Gavin asked. Michael responded by moving closer to Gavin, rubbing his face against the length of Gavin’s arm. The Brit’s face heated up as Michael nuzzled his way closer and closer to Gavin’s face. When they were nose to nose, Gavin could hear the gentle vibrating sound coming from Michael. Gavin gave a breathy giggle at this. "Michael,"

"Hm?" Michael couldn’t even open his eyes, they felt too heavy.

"You’re purring," Gavin laughed softly again. 

"Mhm." Michael wasn’t really listening and he answered without thinking as he nuzzled his face into Gavin’s neck. 

"M-Michael." Gavin ran his hand gently over Michael’s ears. Gavin found them to be very velvety and surprisingly warm. They flattened momentarily then perked back up again as Gavin’s hand left his ears. Michael’s eyes blinked open slowly, though he was still in the haze. As the haze cleared, his eyes opened wider in shock as he found himself extremely close to Gavin.

"Whoa…!" Michael jumped back realizing that he was straddled on Gavin’s lap. 

"Are you ok?" Gavin’s eyebrows knit together in concern. 

"Gavin I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize that I…" Michael stammered. "No one has ever…I’ve never…I-"

"Michael." Gavin smiled gently leaned forward and capturing Michael in a kiss. The hybrid’s eyes flew open at the contact against his lips. He could smell Gavin, taste him even. There was sweetness against the Brit’s lips from the fizzy drink he’d had. He smelled of mint…or pine, some element in his cologne or body spray. He smelled fresh, in a ‘Gavin’ kind of way. 

But…the feeling. 

Gavin’s lips. Soft like…

Michael’s thoughts were melting. The longer he felt the soft kiss Gavin was giving to him, the more difficult it was to try and wrap his head around the thoughts in his head. The more difficult it was to care about the thoughts. He finally didn’t have any secrets to hide. He felt so free.

The redhead let his cautiousness melt away completely, his eyes closed again and he wrapped his arms around Gavin’s neck and pressed his body close. He began to kiss Gavin back, hesitantly, but he poured his feelings into it. The ones that desperately wanted Gavin close, the ones that wanted him far away. The ones that wanted to kiss him, the ones that didn’t. The ones that feared Gavin might give his secret away when he wasn’t ready, the ones that knew he wouldn’t. The ones that maybe loved Gavin, the ones that weren’t so sure. And Gavin took all the feelings Michael gave him, and shared his own with Michael in return. 

Gavin was first to pull back. Breathlessly, he smiled wide at Michael. 

"You look like a dope." Michael tried to pretend that he wasn’t trembling from the kiss himself. 

"I’ll keep your secret, Michael." Gavin reached down and laces his fingers with Michael’s.

"Yeah, yeah." Michael wasn’t good at saying thank you, but Gavin knew what he meant. The Brit leaned forward and placed a kiss on Michael’s forehead.

"Would you just bloody smile? Stop over thinking things." Gavin offered. Michael’s face twitched into a smile. "Good kitty." Gavin unlaced a hand to reach up and pet Michael’s head again. 

"Don’t start with me." Michael gave Gavin a smirk at the ‘pet name’ Gavin had used, but the smirk faded as Gavin scratched at his scalp. Michael let his body fall forward onto Gavin’s and he laid there for a while, purring shamelessly and enjoying Gavin’s body heat. 


	2. Visiting Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You’re…" Michael fidgeted in his seat. "Because, you’re…important."
> 
> "Important?"
> 
> "Yeah…" Michael blushed. "You’re kind of my human."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello!
> 
> Everyone, I tried. I tried so hard to resist continuing this story.  
> But, I couldn't anymore. I got some great ideas and so here is the fic.  
> Sorry if it's cliché and boring.  
> But, I was watching animal planet stuff and they talking about how important it is for cats to smell their scent on their owner. And I just imagined Michael rubbing himself all over Gavin to leave his scent on him, and getting upset when Gavin showers it off and this happened. 
> 
> ALSO, the fic based off of mine is only based from the FIRST CHAPTER. So if you're reading this next chapter, it has nothing to do with the other fic...if tht makes sense? I'm sorry, I'm tired. 
> 
> Lastly, the Regulators in this story are the..."hybrid catchers" to say the least. They hunt for hybrids to be captured and basically 'trained' into being useful to the humans. It's gross. 
> 
> Anyway, enjoy. This fic won't be very long at all. Like 2-3 more chapters. Probably less. 
> 
> And as Always,  
> Thanks for Reading!  
> ~ThatMavin

It was the weekend, and Gavin had an idea of just the thing he wanted to do to unwind on Saturday night: absolutely nothing. He was making himself a nice pot of tea, after the that, the night was going to be his. Maybe he’d play video games, maybe he’d read a book. Actually, it was probably going to be the video games. Gavin had nothing against reading, in fact he loved it. But…the video games sounded far more excited right now. Besides, the book he was currently reading didn’t have pictures. And hell, video games are literally _made_ out of pictures. So…sorry literature. You’ve lost today’s battle. 

As Gavin settled onto the couch and turned on his Xbox, he heard knocking on the door. He cursed under his breath. It was probably the apartment building’s landlord. They’ve been knocking almost weekly because of noise complaints. And every time, Gavin had to tell them that it was the people next door. Not him. The middle aged couple next to him moved out, and a bunch of newly graduated university kids had moved in. They were trouble, not Gavin. 

Once Gavin made his way to the door, he opened it up and was surprised to see Michael standing there, a grin on his face. 

"Oh, M-Michael…" Gavin stammered in shock. "What are you doing here…?"

"Should I have called?" The hybrid asked. Gavin was almost expecting to see his ears, but he remembered that Michael kept them well hidden when he was out. 

"Um…that wouldn’t be necessary. You’re my boi." Gavin shrugged. "Come in."

"I’d love to…but could you help me carry in my boxes?" Michael asked bashfully. Gavin sucked his tongue against his teeth at the question. 

"Boxes?" Gavin repeated.

"Yeah…" Michael motioned to the four cardboard boxes behind him labeled ‘Michael’s Shit’. 

"Is there a reason that you’re bringing in boxes?" 

"I’m just visiting…forever." Michael avoided Gavin’s eyes. 

"Right…" Gavin looked at the boxes, then to Michael. "Well, in that case. Maybe you should’ve called."

"If you’ll help me with the boxes, I’ll explain everything." Michael looked Gavin in the eyes. "Please?"

Gavin hummed and opened the apartment door wider. “Do you drink tea?” He asked. 

"With milk."

~*~

The four boxes weren't at all heavy, and Michael took off his hat immediately, as soon as Gavin closed and locked the door. Gavin watched the cat hybrid remove the clips from his ears. Michael rubbed at his ears and shook his head, tussling his curls. As he looked up, he noticed Gavin staring. 

"What?" Michael rose a brow. 

"Nothing, uh…" Gavin hadn’t meant to be caught staring and became flustered. It’d been a month since Michael had told Gavin his secret, also a month since they’d kissed. They kind of didn’t talk about it anymore. They hadn’t really hung out since then either. Not because of anything personal. Both of them were just busier than usual. If they did hang out during that month, it was somewhere public and just for a little while. So, Gavin hadn’t seen Michael’s ears during that time either.

"So, tea?" Michael cleared his throat. 

"Oh, right." Gavin went to the cupboard, pulling out two mugs. When he turned back around, Michael was gone. "Huh?"

"What?" Michael’s voice was suddenly a lot closer and startled Gavin. 

"Bloody, f-" Gavin bit his lip to keep from cursing.

"I didn’t mean to scare you, sorry." Michael held up his hands in surrender. 

"What are you doing?" Gavin asks, questioning why Michael had gotten so close in the first place. Michael was _directly_ behind him. Only a few inches away. 

"I was…" Michael blushed. "Just checking."

"Checking?" Gavin asked. "Just bloody checking what? My pulse? Because that sure skyrocketed."

"No, uh…I was smelling you." Michael turned away. "Sorry, instincts."

"Instinct for what?" Gavin sat the mugs on the counter as he turned to pick up the kettle. Carefully he filled the mugs. When he turned back around again, Michael was gone. "Really?"

"What?" Michael asked from across the kitchen, at the fridge this time. 

"How are you doing that?"

"Doing what?" Michael opened the fridge, digging around for the milk for his tea. 

"You keep popping up all over the place."

"I am?"

"Yes!" Gavin brought the mugs of tea to the table, Michael brought the milk.

"I’m sorry." Michael frowned. 

"You don’t do that at work." Gavin commented, watching Michael pour milk into his tea. 

"I…move more carefully at work. Yeah." Michael nodded. 

"So this is you normally?" Gavin watched Michael’s movements more curiously now. As the hybrid got up to return the milk to the fridge, his movements seemed more precise and agile.  Not so much how a human moves. 

"I guess." Michael replied from the fridge, then returned to his seat. 

"So…" Gavin ran his finger around the rim of his warm mug. 

"Hm?" Michael sipped his tea, his ears twitched at the sound of one of Gavin’s neighbors hitting the wall with something, followed by obnoxious laughter. 

"Why were you…smelling me?" Gavin wanted to chuckle at how silly the question sounded. But, he didn’t. 

"I wanted to see…" Michael took another sip, stalling. "If you smelled like me."

"What?" Gavin couldn’t help but give a breathy laugh. Michael’s ears went slightly down. "Why would you do that?"

"You’re…" Michael fidgeted in his seat. "Because, you’re…important."

"Important?"

"Yeah…" Michael blushed. "You’re kind of my human."

"What?" Gavin’s eyebrows went up. 

"When cats have their humans…they like for them to smell like them." Michael tried to explain the best he could. "It’s like showing ‘hey, I like this one, they’re mine’ and yeah…"

"Oh…" Gavin took a sip of his tea as he thought that over. Michael felt a bit anxious because he thinks that he didn’t explain that very well. 

"It’s…it’s symbolic ownership like a wedding ring." Michael tried again, but only felt more anxious because that explanation just sounded weird. "Wait, wait! I’m not saying I want to marry you. You’re not really even my human! I was just…I just…I was curious about rather or not you smelled like me. It was just a curious thing. I wasn’t trying to-"

"Michael, calm down." Gavin smiled behind his mug. "It’s fine."

"A-are you sure?" Michael rested his forehead to his hand. "I should’ve picked somewhere else to stay."

"Oh, right." Gavin sat up a bit. "Why are you…moving in exactly?"

"I’m not moving in." Michael corrected. "I’m visiting forever."

"Yes…why are you visiting forever, again?"

"I never said." Michael responded, stalling once more. 

"Well, could you say…please?" Gavin asks. "I think I have a right to know."

"You do." Michael picked up his mug again. This time, taking a long loud slurp. Gavin’s eyebrows rose as this went this went on. Michael kept his eyes closed, as if he was really enjoying it. Which he was, it was good tea. Probably some British tea Gavin picked up, or imported. Michael should ask him which brand it w-

"Michael?" Gavin cleared his throat. Michael opened his eyes, then put the mug down. 

"Hm?"

"Did…something happen?" Gavin became concerned at Michael’s constant stalling. "Did something…or someone force you out of your home?"

"Y-yes." Michael admitted.

"What happened?" Gavin frowned apologetically, before Michael even tells him. 

"Don’t look at me like that…" Michael hated the look of ‘pity’, especially on Gavin’s face. "I said fucking stop!"

"Ok, ok." Gavin nodded. "Just tell me."

"The Regulators." Michael announced. "It was so random and it happened last night."

"They found you?" Gavin’s eyes went wide. "How’d you escape?"

"No, no, no!" Michael waved his hands. "They didn’t find me. They were going through town, saying that they were going to be searching every residence in the area for hybrids because they’ve been told that it was a district with the largest hybrid population. Which is was and-"

"It was?"

"Yeah, tons of hybrids. And…" Michael sighed. "I left."

"Won’t they notice you’re gone, ask the landlord who used to live there, then…come find you at work or something?" Gavin asked. Michael’s jaw fell open. 

"So you’re telling me that I scrambled to pack what I could, then stayed under a bridge last night for nothing?" 

"You stayed under a bridge? Why didn’t you come to me?" Gavin frowned. 

"Because!" Michael stood up, running his hands over the top of his head. "I didn’t want to bother you!"

"Bother…" Gavin stood up too. "You’re my best friend! If I was having a problem, you’d help me! You wouldn’t let me stay under a god damn bridge, Michael!"

"I’m sorry! I panicked!"

"Michael…" Gavin took a deep breath. "I’m sorry for yelling."

"It’s ok…" Michael took his seat again, Gavin as well. "What should I do? You’re probably right. They’ll think of a way to find me."

"Not if we can help it."

"We can’t." Michael shook his head. 

"We can, and by ‘we’ I mean me, you, and the RT/AH staff." Gavin stated. 

"No, fuck that, no." Michael shook his head. 

"Why not? Michael…" Gavin groaned. 

"You can’t out me during a fucking hybrid hunt!" Michael frowned. "What if there are some anti-hybrid staff and they lead the fucking Regulators right to me?"

"Nobody would do that, Michael!" Gavin frowned. 

"Gavin, you’re too much of a fucking goody-two-shoes!" Michael cursed. "You’re looking at this situation too brightly. There’s no bright side! I’m a hybrid! I have fucking cat ears and I’m fucked!"

"Michael…listen to me." Gavin looked him directly in the eyes. "We work with good people. I am pretty positive about things, sometimes overly positive. You’re right. But…we work with good people. And that’s not just my bias, that’s the truth. We can trust them. If anyone, we can definitely trust Geoff."

"What the hell can Geoff do to protect me?" Michael says. "They have fucking bloodhound hybrids trained into working with the Regulators. They’ll catch my scent and fuck me up."

"We can think of something to protect you." Gavin says. "But it’ll only work if we let at least Geoff know your secret, please. Let me protect you....let _us_."

"Can…" Michael sighs. "Can I think about it?"

"Last time you asked to think about it…it was a month ago." Gavin reminded him. "We don’t have a month."

"They start the District 12 hybrid hunt next week, and it’s only Saturday. Just give me until tomorrow, please? That’s one day." Michael begs. Gavin’s not thrilled about it, but he allows it. It’s better than nothing. "You live in District 32. We’ll be fine for a while. Maybe I could just stay in your apartment 24/7 until shit hits the fan."

"No, absolutely not." Gavin shakes his head. "You are to keep going to work as normal."

"Fuck that entirely."

"Nope, you’re going." Gavin finishes his tea and puts the mug in the sink, then returns to the table with Michael. 

"Why should I?"

"Hiding won’t fix anything."

"It will too!" Michael rejects Gav’s statement. "The office is in District 25, that’s closer than your apartment to District 12!"

"Not really…" Gavin shakes his head. "But, let’s drop it."

"Drop it?" Michael says. "Wait…"  

"Hm?"

"Are we going to…tell people at work that we’re living together?" Michael blushed. 

"Um…" Gavin’s face went a bit rouge as well. "Would that bother you?"

"Only if they ask why…because what the fuck do I say then?" Michael shrugs. 

"Well, then…our secret." 

"Great, another secret to keep." Michael rolled his eyes, but he didn’t really seem too annoyed by it. Almost like he enjoyed keeping this secret. 

"Can I ask you something?" Gavin looks at him. Michael’s ears twitched at another far off sound. He nodded. "How do you make me smell like you?"

"Umm…?" Michael gave Gavin a curious look. 

"I’m just wondering."

"I have to be close to you." Michael begins. "I have to touch you, and touch you a lot. Like rub myself on you."

"Wow." Gavin wasn’t really expecting for Michael’s answer to sound like… _that_.

"The day that you pet me…" Michael says. "I’d rubbed my face along your arm, and into your neck."

"Yeah…."

"And you smelled so much like **mine** , I was in ecstasy. To add to the awesomeness…you were petting me…I was so blissed out." Michael recalls, with a fond smile. 

"I smelled like yours?" Gavin giggled. "That’s cute."

"Uh…shut up." Michael brought his lips to his mug, finished the rest of his tea. 

"It’s cute." Gavin says again. 

"Yeah, yeah." Michael rolled his eyes. 

"Does it really make you that happy when I smell like you?" Gavin gives a small smile. 

Michael doesn’t say anything. But, he looks away, then gives a small nod.

"After I shower tonight, will I smell less like you?" Gavin raises a brow. 

"You don’t smell much like me at all right now." Michael replies. "After the shower, you won’t smell like me even a little."

"When that happens, can you fix it?" Gavin asks, his tone was playful. Michael couldn’t tell if he meant it or not. 

"What?"

"After my shower, can you make me smell like you?" Gavin repeats and picks up Michael’s empty mug and brings it to the sink.

As he fills the sink with water, to wash the few dishes in it, he hears Michael’s chair scuff against the floor. There’s a brush of air against Gavin’s back, and he knows Michael’s behind him. Even though Gavin hadn’t really heard him move. Maybe Gavin could end up getting used to the ninja-like way that Michael moved. But, as Gavin turned to face  him, Michael wasn’t there. But...how? Gavin was sure he would be. 

"How the-" Gavin began but heard a snicker from on top of the fridge. Michael sat giggling like a child who’d pulled a prank. "Ok." Gavin folded his arms. "That’s impossible, and you’re full of shit."

_____________________________

Hours of playing video games, ordering in food, more video games. That was how the rest of the night went, until Gavin was ready for bed. 

"I’m gonna go shower, ok?" Gavin asks. 

"Oh, ok." Michael nodded, then looked down at his hands in his lap. 

"I’ll be right back." 

"Ok, I’ll be here just-" Michael was cut off by Gavin’s fingers amongst his curls. Petting him briefly. It was just a quick scratch between the ears, but it was enough to send Michael into purr mode. Which, he stayed in as Gavin walked away. Michael collapsed onto the couch, still warm from Gavin’s body heat. He curled into a ball and purred contently for a while. He actually ended up drifting off into a short nap. 

~*~

"Hey," Michael heard Gavin’s voice.

"Yeah?" Michael responded, stretching his limbs that were a bit stiff from being curled up.  

"I’m going to bed, alright?" Gavin smiled softly. Michael grimaced as he caught Gavin’s scent. He smelled fresh of body wash and shampoos and…ugh, gross. Your human isn’t supposed to smell like the detergent aisle at a department store. "Why the face?"

"You smell _horrible_." Michael says before he can stop himself. He sucked his bottom lip into his mouth as he realized that maybe he shouldn’t have said it. 

"Well…that’s the exact opposite of what I’m supposed to smell like after a shower…should I go back in?" Gavin asks. 

"No, sorry. You don’t smell bad at all." Michael sits up.

"Stop apologizing to me." Gavin demands. 

"What do you mean?"

"You’ve said sorry like…a million times tonight." Gavin rolls his eyes. "You’re my boi, you don’t have to do that."

"Um, alright." Michael nods. 

"But, why’d you say I smell horrible?" Gavin rose a brow. Michael didn’t say anything. "Because...I don’t smell like you?" 

"Well…" Michael looked into his lap again. 

"I told you to fix it…" Gavin reminds him. "So, you want to?"

"Would you mind?"

"Come on." Gavin extended a hand to Michael. 

~*~

 

Gavin lead Michael into his bedroom, which Michael had been in before. It wasn’t uncommon for them to end up sharing his bed when Michael slept over. It was the first time though, that Michael was going to sleep here with his hat off. 

"What should I do?" Gavin sits on the bed. Michael feels himself blush. The lighting in the room is pretty dim. There was only one lamp on near the bed. 

"Lay down." Michel says. "On your back."

"Ok." Gavin obliges, stretching out into a star on his back. Michael laughs at how submissive Gavin is being. He feels like he’s playing Simon Says. 

Michael crawls onto the bed after him. Gavin watches as Michael’s ears twitch, and as Michael’s face lowers to his stomach. The hybrid nudges his nose under the hem of the shirt, until it meets the fuzzy patch of hair leading down from Gavin’s navel. He's searching for a trace of Gavin's natural scent. 

"H-hey," Gavin squirms. "This tickles." 

"Shh," Michael shushes him, and removes his face from Gavin’s shirt. Michael looks at Gavin’s body, from head to toe before straddling his hips over Gavin’s. 

"Michael," Gavin is about to say something, but he lets it go before he says anything. Michael lays his torso flush with Gavin’s. Letting their warmth melt together. All the while, rubbing his face to Gavin’s chest. The warm rhythmic nuzzling is very comforting to Gavin and it makes him sleepy. 

However, he is very much awake when he feels the slick wetness of Michael’s tongue against the scruff of his neck. 

"Michael!" Gavin squeaks out of surprise. 

"You don’t even taste like you should." Michael comments. _So this is a cat thing, too?_ Gavin wonders. 

Michael moves higher and rubs his cheek to Gavin’s. Michael’s curls tickle his skin. 

"I’d like this better when you haven’t showered. That way afterward, your scent will be on me, too." Michael says. 

"Um…a-alright." Gavin replies. He isn’t sure how to react to all of this. So, he simply reaches his hand up and begins petting Michael’s head. Michael’s eyes open wide, before shutting completely. Gavin is happy to hear the vibrating purr of Michael’s contentment as a response. But, Michael doesn’t stop rubbing his face into Gavin’s skin and his clothes. It isn’t just Michael's face against his anymore. Gavin can feel Michael kneading his hands into his torso. It doesn’t hurt, it feels more like a massage. 

When the petting slows down, and Gavin begins to snore, Michael smiles. Pressing his face into Gavin’s chest, taking one final content smell. 

"You smell like mine, now." Michael’s proud to have claimed Gavin. He moves to pull the blanket over the two of them. Michael stays on Gavin’s chest and sighs happily before falling asleep. 

 

_____________________________

 

When Gavin wakes up, Michael isn’t there. But, he hears the TV going in the living room. The Brit yawns as he pads out of his room. 

"Good morning." He greets Michael, but the hybrid doesn’t respond. "Michael?"

Gavin walks further into the living room. He see’s Michael perched on the coffee table, sitting like an owl on a branch. Hie knees brought into his chest, and his ears twitching as he listens to the TV. Gavin’s about to comment on how adorable Michael looks like this until he comes around the couch to see Michael’s eyes wide with horror. 

"What’s happened?" Gavin asks. Michael reaches for the remote, turning the TV up a bit. 

 _"So far, over 50 hybrids have been found and captured. They are being taken to the holding center where they will be questioned about the locations of other hybrids and then hopefully trained into being useful citizens."_ The news reporter spoke. _"It seems that hybrids who fail to comply, or resist capture are tasered, sedated and or met with physical altercations. There has been a report of over ten hybrid deaths so far. Maybe the others will listen to the Regulators and we will lose fewer hybrids."_

"Gav…" Michael stares at the screen. 

 _"You’re right, Rowe."_ Another reporter says. _"The hybrids should look at this for an opportunity to be viewed as important people. Ox hybrids could get jobs doing more instinct natured things like pulling machinery on farms. Same for horse hybrids. I heard that dog hybrids could even get hired to work alongside the Regulators. Making fine money!"_

"Turn the bloody TV off, Michael." Gavin orders. 

"Gavin…I’m…I’m so fucked." Michael’s eyes prickle with tears. 

"Michael, that isn’t going to happen to you." Gavin reaches for the remote on the coffee table, but Michael’s quick reflexes lead him to snatching it up faster. "Michael!"

"I’m fucked!" Michael turns his face from the TV to look at Gavin. "I’m fucked, Gavin! Rather the god damn TV tells me so or not!"

"No you’re not! Not if you let us help you!"

"You’re just postponing the inevitable!"

"Stop thinking like that." Gavin says in a more hushed tone. "And be quiet before someone hears you."

"Who cares?! What’s the point!?" Michael yells even louder. "HEY EVERYONE! I’M A FREAK! I’M A FUCKING FREAK WITH CAT E-" 

"You stubborn, arsehole." Gavin pulls Michael from the table, covering his hand over his mouth. "You’re so bloody stubborn." He holds Michael tight to his chest, he can feel wet spots forming on his T-shirt from Michael’s tears.

"I’m fucked."

"I’m going to help you, I don’t care what you say. You can’t stop me, Michael." Gavin feels Michael’s arms wrap around him in return. 

"Gavin, please help me." 

_“If you see any hybrids, call the Regulators or your local police.”_

**Author's Note:**

> Geez oh man, after reading/saying the word 'ears' so many times, it just doesn't sound/look right anymore. 
> 
> Ears, ears, ears...sounds more like a type of animal to me now. 
> 
> -animal planet voice-  
> "Watch as the wild Ear and his family gather in their burrow to survive the night. This particular Ear family has welcomed two newborn Ears to their herd. Though 48 hours of age, baby Ears are already able to feed themselves."
> 
> I mean, am I right?

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [The Things That Had To Happen](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1976229) by [orphan_account](https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account)




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